A Way Home
by Marguerite Krex
Summary: COMPLETE Alex West comes to the plateau and show's the group a path off the platueau. Who goes, who stays, and who survives..? Story 9 in
1. Prologue

A Way Home  
by Marguerite Krex  
  
  


There are a couple issues that my last story brought up that I feel need to be addressed. I noted in the previous disclaimer that date's would be off...That wont change. This IS just fiction and I wont budge on that point. Second, as for that fic "A Spy Am I" being based off a movie....yes it was, I won't deny it. But if anyone out there saw that movie, the part just screams Marguerite and I did change some facts around...so I'm not a hopeless plagiarizer or unimaginative. Thirdly as for my pen name, yes, I spell "Krex" wrong. Anyone out there with AOL knows how hard it is to get a SN exactly how you want it and "Marguerite Krux" was taken.  
  
Fourth, and perhaps one of the most important points, I did use the derogatory term "Jerry's" when referring to Germans. I did NOT mean any offense and I'm so sorry if I offended anyone. It was a period term however and I won't remove it. Again, I'm sorry if this bother's some people. Last but not least, YES I do have a logical way for the new character Alex to come to the plateau and he'll explain just how Marguerite's "lovely" ex-husband got there as well. I know that's a sore spot for any.  
  
I hope this didn't bother anyone to much that this is the prolog and there's no actually story chapter written yet. I promise it will come soon. Thankyou again for all the wonderful support and I hope this answered a few questions!  
  
  
Sincerely,  
  
MargueriteKrex  
  



	2. Hail The Conquring Hero

Chapter 1: Hail the Conquering Hero  
  
"Alex West...what are you doing here?" Marguerite asked, astonished.  
  
"Well, I was heading down the freeway and took a wrong left, traveled 1200 miles, traversed a jungle..."  
  
"THAT'S Alex West?" Roxton asked, not liking the feeling of this. He trusted his wife completely but trusting another man with his wife....even if he had saved her life, he still didn't like it.  
  
Ned lowered his gun, "Mr. West...do you remember me..?"  
  
"Malone isn't it? Edward Malone? We met right after the war ended."  
  
"I'm suprised a war hero like yourself remembered a single interview."  
  
Alex put his gun down, "I've met few other reporters that did their job with such passion...and passionate people make an impression on me.." He said giving Marguerite a wink.  
  
She almost immediately blushed and stood, still holding Will. "Alex, you already know Ned..this is his wife Veronica and their daughter Emilia..."  
  
"Charmed.." Alex said, nodding to Veronica.  
  
"This is Professor George Challenger, our fearless leader.."  
  
"Well, she got the 'Professor' part right..." Challenger said, stepping forward to shake Alex's hand. "Welcome to our little paradise."  
  
"And this," Marguerite continued, moving to stand by Roxton, "Is my husband and our little bundle of....well....bundle, Will."   
  
"Husband? And here I was thinking I could come and rescue you from the first..."  
  
"You knew about Charles?" Roxton asked suspiciously.  
  
Alex sighed, "Yes I knew about Charles. Ever since Marguerite and I had our little...falling out....I tried to help her in the only way I could, by keeping atrack of her and trying to keep her out of trouble...No easy task."  
  
"Oh trust us, we know." Veronica said smirking earning her a dirty look from Marguerite.  
  
"Oh I have no doubt you do. After none of you returned, everyone assumed you had died but about 6 months ago I got word that Charles Wirth was planning an expedition to come and find you. I wanted to meet him in South America to reason with him...man to man you understand but Jenny and Zoe got sick and by the time I got there, he had already left for the heart of the jungle. I asked around and it took a bit of...persuading...but I managed to get a few guides to take me in the same direction. We traveled up the river as far as we could and then headed into the jungle about half a day and found a field at the base of the plateau where Wirth's base camp was. It took a little more persuading...but finally I was able to find out that behind a waterfall another day's journey along the base they had found a series of caves. I headed up with some men and we found an exit..except it was about 200 yards below the top of a cliff so we had to go back and get some climbing equipment and went back up and managed to get to the top. Then it was just a matter of finding you." Alex said, finally finishing.  
  
"And you came all this way just for an old friend?" Roxton asked, still suspicious. At least he told himself it was suspicion and not jealousy he was feeling.  
  
"Marguerite was never '_just_' anything." Alex said, looking at Roxton straight in the eye.


	3. Trouble Brewin' In Paradise

Chapter 2: Trouble Brewin' In Paradise  
  
Marguerite stepped between the two men, "All right...John, why don't you come help me make breakfast. Veronica will go down and prepare a room for Alex."  
  
"I will?!" Veronica asked.  
  
"You will." Marguerite said, giving her friend a look. Veronica sighed and handed Emilia to her daddy and headed down stairs. She know how easily this situation could become hurtful to Roxton and Marguerite and she didn't want to add to their problems...she'd just remember to point out that Marguerite owed her one when this was over.  
  
Roxton sighed and gave one last look towards Alex before heading into the kitchen, Marguerite following, leaving Alex with Ned and Challenger.  
  
"Now this waterfall you said that the passageway opened up behind..." Challenger prompted.  
  
"It's about 2 days north east..huge riverbed but all dried up now." Alex offered.  
  
"The Summerlee River." Ned said with a grin.  
  
"Sounds like it." Challenger said, grinning as well. "No wonder we never found the way off...it's half way down a waterfall."  
  
Meanwhile in the kitchen Marguerite was preparing breakfast...in other words burning it, while Roxton watched her, holding Will.   
  
"How do you know he's here to help us?" John asked, switching his son to a more comfortable position in his arms. Will just ignored it and grabbed a handful of shirt and stuffed it in his mouth.  
  
"Why would he come all this way to do anything else? John...I know this must be difficult for you......Do you think I'd leave you for him..? John do you ever think I could give you up and Will for anyone else?" She said, her voice getting soft. It was rare that she was upfront with such strong emotions, but this was most decidedly not the time for word games and playful insults.  
  
"No. I trust you. It's him I don't trust. Marguerite, face it, from what you've told me and from what I've seen your taste in companions hasn't always been the best."   
  
"And it seems it hasn't improved!" She said angrily, taking Will and heading across the bridge to their own tree house.  
  
Ned, Challenger and Alex looked up in suprise and Marguerite's retreating back, then looked to Roxton at once who just turned on his heel and continued making breakfast.   
  
"Looks like motherhood hasn't changed some things...." Alex said with a little smirk.  
  
"You have NO idea." Ned said seriously.  
  
"With a woman like that..you just have to take the bull by the horns." Said Alex, far to smugly for Roxton's liking. Then again anything Alex said about HIS Marguerite was never going to be to his liking.  
  
"And hope you don't get cleaved in half in the process." Offered Challenger, helpful as always.  
  



	4. Making Plans

Chapter 3: Making Plans  
  
Dinner was the next time everyone gathered in the same room. Roxton had left before breakfast, dragging poor Ned with him to go "hunting". Ned went with his friend to, if anything, make sure he didn't do something foolish. He was so distracted two raptors could have walked up doing the two step and he wouldn't even have noticed.  
  
Back at the tree house things weren't to much better. Marguerite shut herself away in her own little tree house with Will. No one seemed overly concerned, especially Alex who had on many occasions seen the best and worst of the beautiful woman. He seemed content to spent the day with Veronica and Challenger, exchanging his stories of what's happened in the outside world with their adventures here on the plateau.  
  
But like all things, the relative peace had to end and did when the 8 could no longer avoid each other and gathered around the supper table.   
  
Challenger looked around at his friends. "Family" he amended. No one could go through what they did without becoming closer than any physical bonds of blood could draw a group together. He was going to miss seeing their faces every day.... Clearing his throat he spoke. "Tomorrow Mr. West has offered to show us the way to the cave behind the waterfall and how to navigate our way down safely."  
  
"I think I'll be staying behind..." Veronica said earning a suprised and almost scared look from Ned. "For now," she corrected, smiling and squeezing his hand. "I think Em is coming down with a cold."  
  
"I'll stay too then." Ned quickly offered. _"Where went Veronica, so go my nation,"_ he silently quoted to himself.   
  
Marguerite opened her mouth to speak and Veronica quickly beat her too it. "Why don't you leave Will here just in case something happens?" The dark haired beauty frowned as her friend took away her only excuse to stay behind.   
  
"Then it's settled. We'll start out first thing in the morning. With any luck, we'll be home by Christmas." Challenger said, oblivious to the tension in the room.


	5. Making Up

Chapter 4: Making Up  
  
Finially everyone headed to bed but things at the Roxton tree-house were less than easy going. Neither Marguerite or Roxton tried to break the ice and the silence was deafening. Marguerite put William to bed and then got ready herself as Roxton went in to tell his son goodnight. When he came back in he stood in the doorway, watching his wife brush her hair as she sat at her vanity.  
  
"What are you worried about?" Marguerite finially said, returning his gaze through the mirror. "You think I'll what....run off with him? Go and have a scandelous affair? .....Do you really think so little of me?" Roxton opened his mouth to speak but she interupted. "If that's the type of woman you thought you were marrying, I'm sorry to disapoint you. My standards are a little higher for myself...even if yours arn't."  
  
"Now hold on just a minute! How many times have people come here wanting to kill you? How many times has that put you in danger? Or everyone else here in danger for that matter! I don't care if he's an old friend, old lover or Jolly Old St. Nick, it's foolish to trust a man when we can't be sure what his intentions are!"  
  
"He said.."  
  
"And you believe everything you hear? Marguerite...I just...." sighing he went over to her resting his hands on her shoulders and gently running a hand through her dark curls. "Is it worth fighting over?"  
  
Sighing, Marguerite slumped, leaning back against her husband, "John...he was my best friend...the only friend I'd ever had....I won't give him up...not even for you."  
  
Roxton suddenly felt guilty. How could he have doubted his wife? Even if Alex had less than honorable intetions, Marguerite would never succumb willingly to him and West certianly didn't seem the type to force a woman. True, he didn't like it that another man had once taken care of his wife....but at least someone had stepped forward and done it when she needed it so badly. Leaning down, he gently placed a kiss on her temple. "Let's go to bed.."  



	6. Down, Down We Go

The next morning tragety struck in the form of a cold. Both Veronica and Em had a nasty case of..the sniffles. Alright so it wasn't a national emergancy but it did mean Challenger would be staying behind leaving Roxton, Alex and Marguerite to go check out the cave.   
  
Alex said it was about 30 or 40 feet down the side of the dried up waterfall at the end of the Summerlee River so they loaded up some of the meger climbing equiptment and started out with the assurances that Will would be just fine.  
  
Roxton did his best to be more civil to Alex but that didn't mean he'd become his best friend. He watched the man like a hawk but besides the gentle teasing directed at Marguerite every once and awhile, he couldn't find a thing about him that was improper.  
  
Finially they reached the end of the Summerlee river. Marguerite edged closer and peered over the side. She remembered not to many years ago when they all stood there, wondering if dear, sweet Summerlee survived. Then again when Ned "fell" over the edge...and was blown back to saftey by some unknown force.   
  
Roxton quickly put an arm around her waist as he peered over the edge as well. "How far down did you say it was?" he asked, getting a bad feeling about this suddenly.  
  
"Only 50 feet or so." Alex said, securing a rope to a nearby tree and tossing it over the edge. "Why dont you let me go down first..you can follow."  
  
Roxton nodded, taking off his hand and holster, handing them to his wife. "Stay here." He instructed, earning him a little glare from her direction and the two men headed off the edge of the drop-off. 


	7. A Death For A Life

Chapter 6: A Death For A Life  
  
And as Alex West promised, 50 feet down the rope they found an opening large enough for them to crawl through one at a time. Another hundred feet down the passage way widened and started to slope downwards. Slowly the two men stood up looking around.  
  
"This is it?" Roxton asked, peering down the steep but manageable pathway leading into a dark abyss.  
  
"Yup. In all it's ...glory." Alex replied, brushing a cob web off his shoulder.   
  
Suddenly the earth started shaking. The two men exchanged a look of panick before heading back to the crawl space a moment before some rocks slid down, covering it. Moments later the tremor stopped and the two men exchanged another look, Roxton's one of indignation that this happened once more and Alex's one of mild suprise and without speaking, they began digging.   
  
It was getting late. It had been at least 6 hours and the sun was going down. The boys said they were just going to have a quick peek and be back up. Marguerite was down right terrified. The small tremor could have crushed them, blocked their way, anything! She couldnt just leave so she built a small fire, waiting for what she didn't know.  
  
Finially the two got the entrance uncovered but the small passage way rumbled threatening to give way at any second. Without thinking, Roxton headed through first. What point was there in getting off the plateau if he didnt have his wife and son with him? Half way through it rumbled again, dust and small pebbles pelting him and Alex who was a few feet behind. Twenty-five feet to go, fifteen, ten, five and finially he was out in the fresh air, able to see the stars. As he reached for the rope that lead up to the ground above his hand sliped, sending a wave of rocks that came crashing down. He did the only think possible and launched himself at the rope.  
  
The loud roar of another tremor woke Margueirte immedately and she looked around, grabbing a tourch. She saw the rope taught, moving slightly as someone climbed but was to afraid to call out or go peek over the edge. For what seemed like an eternity she waited until one hand appeared within her vison, then a second with a wedding ring on his fourth finger. Roxton's wedding ring. Quickly she was at the edge, helping him climb over the side to safty. "What happened?!....Where's Alex..?"  
  
Roxton coughed, closing his eyes as he leaned back against his wife, trying to regain his stregnth. "The entrance colapsed."  
  
"Oh god..."  
  
He quickly looked up at his wife's stricken face. "Just the entrance...your friend was a good 20 feet behind me...I'm sure he's safe and on his way back down to civilization."   
  
Marguerite looked at him a long moment before nodding and pulling him closer, brushing dust covered hair from his eyes. If it's a lie, it's for a good cause, Roxton thought.  
  
They rested for the rest of the night and somberly headed back to the tree house the next day. When they reached the top the both stopped and staired. There was Ned, holding both Em and Will who were crying like the world was about to end, Challenger no where in site and Veronica on the lounge chair with at least two blankets pulled over her sleeping despite the noise.  
  
"Thank god you back! Take them!" Ned said, handing them each a child.  
  
"What happened to you?!" Roxton asked his friend, trying not to look to amused.   
  
"They're sick! They're all sick! Each and everyone of them got the flu at the same time and you know why? To drive me crazy that's why!"  
  
Marguerite just laughed outright. It wasnt unusual for Ned to get worked up but to see a grown man almost hysterical over two crying children? Almost made her wish that they could stay there forever. Almost. 


End file.
